Micro-location refers to defining distinct areas, zones or regions within real-world, physical geographic areas that are subject to occupation by persons or other objects with reference to by electronic or virtual perimeters. The virtual perimeters are not visible tangible objects that physically engage or prevent ingress or egress into micro location areas, but are instead defined in space by geographic coordinates, or by distance dimensions relative to some reference point or location. Micro-locations may be configured as a predefined set of boundaries, such as at the borders of departments in a retail store, restricted areas, rooms in a building, etc.
Micro-locations can also be dynamically generated and defined by effective radio wave broadcast or distance dimension radii around an object or other reference point location, for example extending to a distance from a broadcast node at which a Bluetooth® of Wireless Fidelity (“WiFi”) signal or message is receivable by a personal programmable device carried by a user. (BLUETOOTH is a trademark of Bluetooth SIG. in the United States or other countries.) As micro-location zones are not physical objects, their size and dimensions may be dynamically altered and customized as needed, providing boundaries that are variable over time with respect to establishing zoned areas. For example, a BLUETOOTH beacon uses low energy proximity sensing to transmit a universally unique identifier that, when in close proximity, is picked up by mobile programmable devices such smart phones, tablets, global positional system (GPS) devices, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and other devices, Such devices use the transmitted beacon information to perform a variety of actions, including determining the device's physical location, tracking movement of the device, and triggering location-based actions on the device (check-in on social media, triggering a location-specific push notification, etc.).
Mobile devices may use communications with micro-location systems to determine their movement relative to defined zones (time currently dwelling within a zone, movement entering or exiting different zones, etc.). Location-aware computing devices may thereby receive messages and other notifications (push text messaging, e-mail, SMS messaging, etc.) from micro-location service providers or other associated entities that provide information relevant to the device or the user associated with the device, including as related to attributes of a particular, proximate zone location.
Micro-location systems can be configured to enable an action to be taken when a device enters or leaves a specific geographical area defined by a zone. For example, service providers may use micro-locations to track user movements relative to restricted areas, and thereby generate and broadcast warning to users that they (or someone else carrying such a device) are about to leave or enter a particular restricted area. Micro-location systems may send a text notification to a user carrying a smart phone that he or she is leaving a secure area and will need to produce appropriate identification credentials in order to gain re-admittance, or an alert to a parent that an infant wearing a monitoring device is approaching an outer boundary of the back yard of a home.
Commerce and marketing services may use micro-locations to alert user's operating or carrying personal, location-aware computing devices of offers and other marketing that are relevant to a proximate zone, for example to sale promotion currently in effect at a nearby store department. Thus, an electronic shopping list application executing on a smart phone may interact with a micro-location system of a retail establishment, wherein the retailer's system may review shopping list data and notify a user to buy bread when user nears a grocery store, or a bakery department within the grocery store. A department store application may notify a user about a current sale on their favorite shirts (as indicated by their shopping history) when at or near a store branch, or within the relevant clothing department zone.